NASA announces that astronauts aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft are scheduled to return to Earth next year, following extended testing and mission planning.

Bill Nelson, the head of NASA, has announced that two astronauts from NASA who travelled to the International Space Station (ISS) in June using Boeing’s flawed Starliner capsule will be returning to Earth on a SpaceX spacecraft at the beginning of next year.

On Saturday, he informed journalists that the problems with Starliner’s propulsion mechanism posed too much of a danger to transport its initial crew back.

On June 5th, the first crew to embark on Starliner consisted of NASA’s Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams – both accomplished military test pilots. Heralded as veterans in their field, they were expected to undertake an eight-day trial mission en route to the ISS.

During its flight to the ISS, Starliner encountered multiple malfunctions in its propulsion system within 24 hours of takeoff leading to significant and prolonged delays. The spacecraft experienced a total failure of five thrusters out of the 28 onboard along with helium leaks which are utilized for pressurizing said thrusters.

During a news conference in Houston, Nelson announced that Butch and Suni will accompany Crew-9 back next February with Starliner returning without crew as per NASA’s decision.

Boeing’s new CEO Kelly Ortberg was consulted about the agency’s decision, as stated by him.

“Ortberg conveyed to me his intention of persisting with the troubleshooting after Starliner’s safe return,” stated Nelson.

Boeing has been investigating the cause of its thruster mishaps and helium leaks since Starliner’s docking to the ISS in June.

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In order to persuade NASA officials of the safety of Starliner, the company conducted tests and simulations on Earth and collected data. This allowed them to provide evidence that it is safe for flying crews back home.

However, the outcomes of that testing led to more challenging engineering inquiries and ultimately did not alleviate NASA officials’ apprehensions regarding Starliner’s capability to complete its manned return voyage – deemed as the most intimidating and intricate aspect of the test mission.

By choosing not to bring the astronauts back on the Boeing Starliner, NASA prioritizes crew safety, as per Florida-based science and space journalist Amy Thompson.

Thompson informed Al Jazeera that the primary worry is regarding how any leaks in the spacecraft may affect it during re-entry. Furthermore, she stated concerns about potential overheating of the vehicle while entering Earth’s atmosphere and also brought up similar worries related to thrusters. According to Thompson, NASA can currently conduct tests on these matters without endangering astronaut crews.

Ortberg’s ongoing crises are worsening with NASA’s decision, and the uncertain path to certification for Starliner. As CEO, Ortberg aims to restore his company’s reputation following a midair incident in January where a door panel from a 737 MAX passenger jet blew off dramatically.

Source: Al Jazeera, Reuters